Freedom Flix

Handcuffed hairbraider sues in federal court for right to teach

Isis Brantley is a widely recognized expert on African hairbraiding who wants to teach people to braid hair for a living in Dallas. But even with her decades of experience, is telling Isis she must now convert her modest hairbraiding school into a large barber college, and become a state-licensed barber instructor, before she can teach the next generation of African hairbraiders.

When the state of Texas began regulating hairbraiders in 2007, it wedged Texas’s hairbraiding license into the state’s barbering statute. This means that Isis must spend 2,250 hours in barber school, pass four exams, and spend thousands of dollars on tuition and a fully-equipped barber college she doesn’t need, all to teach a 35-hour hairbraiding curriculum. Tellingly, Texas will waive all these regulations if Isis goes to work for an existing barber school and teaches hairbraiding for them.

But braiders aren’t barbers, and braiding instructors shouldn’t be forced to build barber schools or take classes from barbers.

That is why on October 1, 2013, Isis joined with the Institute for Justice to file a federal lawsuit against Texas. A victory in her case could impact entrepreneurs throughout the state and beyond.

Freedom Flix

The Institute for Justice is always looking for new ways to promote the message of freedom. To that end, IJ produced the following videos in-house to tell the stories of our clients and their fight for individual liberty.

None of this — the cases or these videos — would be possible without the continued generosity of our donors. We hope you enjoy them and share them with those who need a little inspiration.

The Fight for Braiding Freedom (5:35)Since the advent of hair braiding more than 5,000 years ago, it has been a simple and safe practice that government has no business regulating. African-style hair braiding uses no dyes or chemicals, and it is safe for braiders to perform.

Gov't grabs elderly man's home; won't give reason (4:10)New Jersey’s CRDA is trying to use eminent domain to seize Charlie Birnbaum's property as part of a “mixed-use development” project. The trouble is that CRDA has no concrete plans to do anything in particular with it.

Gov't to Citizens: Want Free Speech? Take a number. (1:15)Can the gov't pass a law saying that only the first 12 people to vote in an election get to vote for every office, or that only the first 12 people who arrive at church get to stay for the entire sermon?

Behind the Scenes of the Caswell Forfeiture Victory (5:58)Last January, a federal court in Massachusetts dismissed a civil forfeiture action against the Motel Caswell, a family-run motel in Tewksbury, handing a complete victory to owners Russell and Patricia Caswell.

Terms of Engagement: More Constitution Less Government (1:39)The Constitution was designed to limit government power and protect individuals from the tyranny of majorities and interest-group politics. But those protections are meaningless without judges who are fully committed to enforcing them, and America's judge